The Federal Shariat Court (FSC) on Monday declared the government’s 2022 amendment decriminalising attempted suicide as un-Islamic and restored criminal liability for the act.
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The court announced its reserved verdict on petitions challenging the amendment that had removed attempted suicide as a criminal offence from Pakistan’s penal laws.
Accepting the petitions, the FSC ruled that the legislation was inconsistent with Islamic principles and declared the relevant amendment void.
As a result of the ruling, the previously deleted provision of the Pakistan Penal Code relating to attempted suicide has been restored, making the act punishable once again under the law.
The verdict was issued by a three-member bench comprising Chief Justice Iqbal Hameedur Rehman, Justice Muhammad Anwar Iqbal, and Justice Ameer Khan.
Advocates Hammad Hassan Dar and Azam Malik appeared on behalf of the petitioners during the proceedings.
The 2022 amendment had removed criminal penalties for attempted suicide as part of broader legal reforms concerning mental health and criminal justice.
